


"Newt Adopts A Kaiju"

by FalseProphet (Batmanthegroomer)



Category: Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: Otachi - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-03
Updated: 2013-08-03
Packaged: 2017-12-22 06:22:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,252
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/909938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Batmanthegroomer/pseuds/FalseProphet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Baby Otachi, it turns out, wasn’t exactly dead when Hermann arrived to help with the Drift…</p>
            </blockquote>





	"Newt Adopts A Kaiju"

Newt. Could not. Believe it.

It had been almost an hour since it had sunk in as actual reality and he still couldn’t believe it. He was in a tent bathed in artificial light, just miles from the skeleton of one of the first Kaiju, and he still couldn’t believe it. But here he was—staring at it with it staring right back—and it was real. He was reminded again of it’s realness as it reached out with a clawed forearm and grabbed his ankle.

He couldn’t help his immediate reaction. Newt stumbled backwards and kicked out with his leg like he was trying to rid a spider from his pants. As he stumbled to regain his balance he felt the Kaiju’s response to his dismissal; confusion, pain and shame at rejection. It didn’t know what it had done wrong.

"Da~amnit." Newt crooned, moving forward cautiously. “It-it’s ok. I didn’t… didn’t mean it." He reached out an arm—shaking like a man with Parkinson’s—and tapped the creature on the top of the head.

Newt’s eyes widened as the baby leaned into his touch, closing a third membrane over it’s large bug-eyes. The beast made a chuffing sound like a large jungle cat, jiggling it’s bile sac happily.

Happily.

Newt kept waiting for the hang-over from the Drift to fade but he knew it was just wishful thinking. He’d spent enough time with the pilots and their Jaegar myths to know it would be at least another day or two before he felt like his mind was his own again. In the meantime he would have to learn to accept random brain impluses from a premature alien creature from another dimension.

Newt watched as the membranes over the infant’s eyes retracted. He found himself staring at his fish-eye lensed reflection. He could have sworn he saw adoration on the Kaiju’s expression. Then again maybe he was just feeling it through the Drift.

"Where is he?"

Newt turned to look over his shoulder quickly. The Kaiju lifted it’s head, also curious about the sound. It was Hermann.

Newt turned quickly back to the beast and held out his hands. In his panic to come up with an excuse and hold in his gloating he forgot to be cautious. Both palms landed flat on the side of the beast’s head.

"Ok ok, you remember the plan?" Newt asked in a hurried whisper. Through the Drift he could still feel pooling in his consciousness—through the hive mind he had been permitted a glimpse into—he showed the infant Kaiju what he wanted.

The infant blinked. Newt made an expression of impatience and bobbed his head a little like a chicken to hurry the creature up with making it’s mind. It either played along now or it died.

Apparently self-preservation was a common theme no matter what your chemical make-up.

Otachi Junior blinked a few times and then rested it’s large chin on the ground. It’s legs were already slightly sprawled to look dead, or at least non-working. The eyes closed under three separate membranes. Then as a final touch—and re-affirming for Newt the truth of the situation, unlikely and impossible as it seemed—the beast let a long, tendril tipped ‘tongue’ slip from it’s mouth to hang on the ground.

It had learned that from Newt. Just then.

"Newt!"

"Hermann!" Newt turned quickly and grabbed Hermann’s upper arms, standing between his partner and the beast playing dead.

"Dear God—"

"Impressive right? Yeah, right ok so… Listen, you gotta listen, can you listen—"

"It’s clearly premature but still so… deadly." Hermann shoved Newt aside. He approached the beast, caution thrown to the wind because as far as Hermann and the rest of the world were concerned, the beast was dead. There was no reason to fear something that couldn’t hurt you. The threat of Kaiju Blue was null in Hermann’s mind as it had been quite some time since the beast had died and that was plenty long enough for the toxic gasses to dissipate.

Newt covered his face with both hands, breathing heavily and his heart pounding in his ears. He drew his hands down over the stubble at his chin until they steepled there.

"Hermann…"

"You know I can almost see now why you appreciate these creatures to such an extent—"

"Hermann…"

"I can only imagine the medical possibilities living in such a finely preserved, intact specimen!"

"HERMANN!" Newt felt his bad left eye twitch as his counterpart finally looked at him.

"Rude." Hermann muttered.

"I need you to listen to me."

"Are you about to gloat? Honestly, Newton. You’re making too big a deal out of this." Hermann waved dismissively. “You’ve Drifted successfully once, no need to—"

"Hermann, for God’s sake, man! Listen. To The. Words. I am. Speaking."

Hermann tilted his head and stood up. He’d made almost a complete circle around the beast.

"I’m… listening."

"No, like…" Newt sighed and quickly approached Hermann. He grabbed the other man by the arm and pulled him away from the Kaiju. He forcefully sat him down on some of the rubble under the tent walls. Newt opened his mouth to speak, then closed it. He stood out of a crouch and tried again, same result. He turned around, one hand on his hip the other in his hair.

Hermann watched his partner with a mixture of annoyance, expectancy and impatience. He lifted his eyebrows as Newt turned back around and took a breath.

"Hermann, what I’m going to tell you is going to sound crazy—"

"I’m used to that from you."

"No time for jokes. Serious time. Be serious. I just—I need you to maybe, tru~ust me a little and not freak out on me?" Newt slowly moved his gaze from the wall of the tent where he had somehow found courage, to his partner’s face. “And—Hermann?" Newt stood up straight at the look on Hermann’s face.

Terror.

Newt slowly turned around, but he knew already what was waiting.

Behind him the baby Kaiju had lifted it’s head. It’s two large, bug-eyes were staring at the two men curiously as it sucked it’s blue tongue back into it’s mouth like discolored spaghetti.

Fuck. Newt thought.

In the next second Hermann scrambled to his feet. He attempted to grab Newt—clearly intent on running as far away as possible—and was doing a piss-poor job of controlling his body.

"Hermann…"

"IT’S ALIVE! IT—" Hermann started. His shouting was suddenly muffled under Newt’s hand. The slightly younger scientist grabbed the back of Hermann’s head with one hand and clamped his other over Hermann’s mouth.

"Hermann! Shh, listen! I know it’s alive." Newt attempted, watching the life seem to fade from Hermann’s eyes before returning in a haze of ‘dear sweet lord what reality is this am I dreaming please let me be dreaming’.

"It’s not going to kill us."

"How in hell do you presume to know that?!" Hermann shouted, reaching up and pulling Newt’s hand away from his mouth.

"Shhh! Because—because I can hear it, Hermann! Through the Drift."

"You didn’t Drift with this one! You—"

"Hive mind, Hermann."

The two men looked at each other for a long moment. Newt slowly released his partner. Hermann stood hunched as if he were still being assaulted for a good second before slowly standing and composing himself.

"You can…"

Newt nodded.

"Because of the Drift…"

Newt nodded.

"And it…?"

Newt sighed heavily.

"It may… just think I’m it’s mother."


End file.
